Bottle opener and cap retainer



Oct. 8, 1957 M, B CQHEN 2,808,747

BOTTLE OPENER AND CAP RETAINER Fild Sept. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-$heet 1 MIN! QIIHWHLQWI III-75:3

II N VENTUR MEYER Come/v JEy I A TURNEY United States Patent BOTTLE OPENER AND CAP RETAINER Meyer B. Cohen, Indianapolis, Ind. Application September 14, 1955, Serial No. 534,183

4 Claims. (Cl. 81-3.3)

This invention relates generally to a device into which the head of a bottle being closed by a crown or cap may be inserted through an opening so that one side of the crown placed against an abutment and the under edge of the opposite side of the crown is engaged under a lip whereby the bottle may be pushed downwardly to pry off the cap. The invention also embodies means for catching and retaining the caps when the bottle'is withdrawn from the device.

Specifically the invention embodies a structure wherein there is a front, box-like housing open across its back side and engageable with an upper mounting which is secured in position against a wall or any suitable object, the housing being detachably engaged with that mounting, and there being a removable back enclosure 'of the housing below that mounting so that housing may be unloaded in respect to the crowns which have been collected following a series of bottle opening operations.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a structure of the nature indicated wherein the bottle crown may be readily removed, and the crowns dropped directly into a surrounding housing. A further important object of the invention is to permit easy unloading of the housing all without the use of tools or bolts or screws and the like.

A still further important object of the invention is to provide a structure of the nature indicated which will be relatively small and compact and will be neat in appearance with smooth exterior surfaces.

A still further important object of the invention is to provide a structure wherein the bottle cap removing apparatus will be entirely embodied within a housing so as to present no part thereof outside of the housing which otherwise might be objectionable in respect to having sides, corners, or edges catching objects moved therepast.

These and many other objects and advantages of the invention, including the particular design of the structure permitting a relatively low cost of construction, will become apparent to those versed in the art in the following description of one particular form of the invention as illustrated in the accompany drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a view in front elevation of structure embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view in top plan;

Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation;

Fig. 4 is a view in central vertical section on the line 4-4 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a view in transverse, vertical section on the line 5-5 in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a detail on an enlarged scale in vertical section on the line 6-6 in Fig. 3; and

Fig. 7 is a view in side elevation with the mounting bracket and lower closure partially rocked rearwardly from the housing.

An upper mounting bracket generally designated by the numeral 10 is formed to have a planar surface 11, from the sides of which are turned forwardly flanges'12 and 13. There is also a flange 14 turned forwardly from the upper Patented Oct. 8, 1957 edge portion of the mounting bracket 10. The vertical height of the bracket 10 is made to be such that it will receive thereon a claw member 15.

This claw member 15 is made to' have a back plate 16 of generally planar extent, from the upper end portion of which the member is carried through an arcuate portion 17 around, forwardly, and downwardly and thence rearwardly by a planar section 18 to a foot 19 which bears against and across the lower portion of the back plate 16. This claw member 15 is provided with a central window 20 through the inclined portion 18, and the upper marginal portion of the window 20 is provided an arcuate length 21'centrally disposed across the window, the portion extending or arching upwardly. The back plate 16 is provided with a forwardly extending crown I abutment 22 laterally centrally of the window 20, and so designed that when the crown (not shown) on a bottle is carried upwardly against the lower side of the abutment 22, with the forward under edge of the crown engaged back of the edge of the arcuate length 21, the bottle may be pried downwardly to lift the crown from the bottle.

The claw member 15 is secured in position by means of screws (not shown) carried through holes 23, 24, and matching with like holes in the mounting bracket plate 10. As will be noted, the holes 23 and 24 appear through the window 20, whereas the hole 25 is carried through the foot 19 and the plate 16. A rectangular housing generally designated by the numeral 26 is provided with a depth exceeding the horizontal greatest dimension, through the claw member 15 as indicated in Fig. 4, and is open from its rear side. The flanges 12 and 13 of the mounting bracket 10 will-fit slidingly within the side walls 27 and 28 of'the housing 26, and the flange 14 will fit against the top wall 29 of the housing 26. A housing back closure plate 30 is provided to enclose the housing from its rear side below the mounting bracket plate 10. Guide flanges 31 and 32 extend forwardly from the back closure plate 30 to fit slidingly within the housing sides 27 and 28, and there is also a lowerforth extending flange 33 slidingly fitting inside of the bottom 34 of the housing 26. The upper edge 35 of the back closure plate 30 is adjacent the lower edge 36 of the mounting bracket plate 10, Fig. 5, so that housing 26 is effectively closed from its rear side.

The flanges 12, 13, 31 and 32, are each provided with a seriesof holes 37, Fig. 7 into each of which'sits a detent 38 of rounded nature, Fig. 6, as a means for securing the housing 26 detachably to the mounting bracket plate 10, and-also securing the back closure plate 30 to the housing 26. The various flanges 12, 13, 31 and 32 will spring inwardly one toward the other sufliciently to allow these detents 38 to slide thereover until they enter the holes 37 whereupon the flanges will spring back into their positions into substantial contact with the side walls 27 and 28 of the housing 26.

With mounting bracket plate 10 secured in position on any desired mounting surface, the housing 26 with its back closure plate 30 snapped into the closing position as indicated in Figs. 4 and 5, can then be brought up to have the upper portion of the housing 26 brought around the flanges 12, 13 and 14 so that the housing 26 may then be pushed rearwardly until the detents 38 come into the holes 37 and thus secure the housing 26 in position.

lower portion of the back The housing 26 may be removed from the connection with the mounting bracket 10 (normally fixed to a wall, but herein shown removed from the wall) simply by pulling the housing 26 p from the bracket 10, freeing the detents from the holes 37, and then the closure plate 30 which is still in place and held by the removed housing may likewise be pulled out from the back of the housing 26 by rocking it in relation to the housing, I

as illustrated in Fig. 7. The housing 26 is provided with an elliptical opening 39 to expose the claw member 15 therethrough and to give ample room for the entrance of the bottle neck and its capping crown through that opening for engagement of the crown under the claw edgeZl as above indicated.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in the one particular form, it is obvious that structural variations may be employed without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I therefore do not desire to be limited to that precise form beyond the limitations which may be imposed by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A bottle crown cap remover and retainer comprising a mounting bracket; a crown cap engaging claw member positioned over the bracket, said claw member being a one piece member having a, plate lying over said bracket and curving from its top end forwardly and downwardly and thence by a planar portion inclining downwardly and rearwardly to a lower portion of said plate, the claw member having a window through said inclined portion, the upper margin of said window arching upwardly into the junction of the inclined portion and the downwardly curving portion, and an abutment extending forwardly from said plate exposed through said window and lying at an elevation below said arching margin; a housing detachably engaging said bracket, said housing extending below the bracket and provided with an opening in its front surface to receive the capped end of a bottle; and a closure member across the rear side of the housing below said bracket.

2. A bottle crown cap remover and retainer comprising a mounting bracket, said bracket having a flange extending forwardly from each of its sides, said flanges having spaced apart openings therealong;-a crown cap engaging claw member positioned over the bracket; a housing having side Walls extending slidingly over said flanges, upper and lower positioned detents extending inwardly in opposing relation from the housing side walls, said upper detents detachably engaging said bracket by releasably engaging said flange openings, said housing extending below the bracket; and a detachable housing closure member across its rear side below said mounting bracket, said closure member having forwardly extending side edge flanges slidingly fitting within said housing side walls, said last flanges having spaced apart openings releasably receiving said lower detents.

3. A bottle opener and cap retainer comprising a mounting bracket; a flange extending normally from respective side portions of the bracket, said flanges having spaced apart openings therealong; a bottle cap claw member having a back plate secured to said bracket between said flanges; a housing having a front wall, top and bottom and side walls, said front wall having an opening therethrough over said claw member; a housing detachable back closure plate, said plate having a flange extending from each of its side portions with openings therein and spaced therealong; detents extending from said housing side walls and entering both said bracket flange and said plate flange openings; and a flange extending from the top portion of said mounting bracket over which the top wall of said housing is received and guided locating said detents to coincide axially with said flange openings.

4. The structure of claim 3 in which said claw member consists of a straight back plate curving from its upper end forwardly and downwardly and thence rearwardly by an inclined planar portion to finally merge into a foot portion, a window through said inclined portion, the upper marginal'portion of said window provided with an arcuate length arching'upwardly, and an abutment extending forwardly from said back plate and located centrally of said window.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

